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Electronic shelf labels could cost workers up to $6.9bn a year

An AFL-CIO analysis tied universal electronic shelf labels to algorithmic, personal-data based pricing and estimated annual wage losses between $1.6bn and $6.9bn, affecting 44,223 to 191,633 jobs.

Reported · Written up by our desk · Trade & Tariffs

Electronic shelf labels in US grocery stores could raise prices and shrink paychecks, according to a report released Tuesday by the AFL-CIO Tech Institute, which is calling for a ban on the technology.

The report, titled “Priced Out, Pushed Out: Electronic Shelf Labels Raise Prices and Shrink Paychecks,” analyzes label manufacturers’ own marketing materials and estimates universal adoption could result in $1.6bn to $6.9bn in lost wages annually, impacting 44,223 to 191,633 jobs.

It argues the digital tags can be linked to the same pricing systems used for dynamic pricing, including surveillance pricing that changes prices based on personal data, pointing to how algorithmic software used in online retail may be applied in stores.

The AFL-CIO report says it arrives as states move to restrict surveillance pricing and electronic shelf labels, noting that Maryland became the first state to ban surveillance pricing in April, with Connecticut and New Jersey also signing bans into law.

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